Dog Attack Causing Lip Wound

Animal bites are relatively common occurrences reaching about 4.5 millions of people every year. The main aggressor is the domesticated dog, responsible for around 90% of the patients, with children being the most affected, with 70% of the registered patients, while with adults that number is a lot lower (15%). Bites around the head and neck require special attention. Due to the presence of noble structures and the rich local vascularization, any wounds have been immediately addressed to stop bleeding and further complications. The present study shows a woman patient, victim of a dog bite in her face, where the dog is her own, a domesticated Weimaraner. The patient was attended to in the Unidade de Pronto Atendimento, the procedure was to first apply anesthesia, then clean up the wound, debris of borders, and the plane suturation. Two months after the surgery, the patient showed satisfactory healing, with no complaints about pain or esthetics. As final considerations, it has to be remembered that facial trauma has to be assessed and taken care of immediately, in a way that closing the wound in the first hours after the trauma increase the chances of obtaining a better esthetic as physiologic result for the patient, also preventing infections from the wound and external environment. Also, in the case of animal bites, it is important that the professional possess the knowledge to deal with each individual situation, employing the correct prophylactic vaccine and perform the correct notification. Address correspondence and reprint requests to Abrahão Cavalcante Gomes de Souza Carvalho, DDS, MSc, PhD, Unichristus, João Adolfo Gurgel Street, 133, Cocó, Fortaleza, Ceará 60192-345, Brazil; E-mail: abrahao_cav@yahoo.com.br Received 4 January, 2018 Accepted 5 April, 2018 The authors report no conflicts of interest. © 2018 by Mutaz B. Habal, MD.

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